Discussions By Condition: Medical Stories

Chronic illness

After many years of going to doctors (over a dozen), I was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease, shoulder anomaly, fibromyalgia and migraines. I cannot believe the intense pain over the last 1 1/2 yrs, especially with the headaches. I can track my symptoms before a headache, but cannot prevent it from happening. The headaches occur every 4-5 weeks. I begin to feel flu-like symptoms about 5-7 days before the headache, I get very hot (without a fever), dizzy, weak, tired, grouchy, lethargic. Before the headache, the pain starts in my neck, I feel stabbing pains in my head, pain behind my eyes, light sensitivity - then headache hits. I'm down for at least 3-days - can't eat, drink sprite to keep hydrated and it works to help nausea. Ice seems to work best to provide numbness. Most of the migraine medicines do not work. I have just recently been tried on Migranol - it helped - but did not get rid of the headache. Suppositories help with the nausea. The problem is that I've been given so much medicine that does not work for the fibro or the headaches that I'm starting to believe I have something else going on in my body. Unfortunately I have to learn to live with this illness as do my family and husband, but will continue to seek the cause to help find relief. Any ideas or comments?

1 Replies:

Have you been checked for celiac disease?Also, have you tired a prophylactic drug for the migraines? generally there are 4 categories of these:calcium channel blockersbeta blockersanticonvulsantstricylclic antidepressantsYou have to take a prophylactic every day. I'm on verapmail, a calcium channel blocker, with good results. I failed my beta blocker and tricyclic.Another thing that might be worth looking into is having thyroid antibodies checked to rule out underlying thyroid disease.Best wishes.